


The Rope Tree

by quite_probably_lying



Category: The Yogscast
Genre: Gen, Haunting, Implied/Referenced Suicide
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-29
Updated: 2016-04-29
Packaged: 2018-06-05 05:58:53
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 453
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6692353
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/quite_probably_lying/pseuds/quite_probably_lying
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In the forest there is a tree, with a rope tied to it.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Rope Tree

**Author's Note:**

> Yet another short I wrote in Creative Writing. Considering making this piece longer, can't decided if I like the ending or want to continue it more.

In the forest there is a tree, with a rope tied to it. The village children scramble up the branches and use it as a swing. The adults won’t go near the tree, too wary of the spirit that has been seen there. Whispers of it being haunted makes the tree even more appealing to the children, the older ones daring each other to spend a night sleeping in the branches, often calling it a test of worth. They don’t believe in ghosts, much like they stopped chasing fairies through the undergrowth and now just pretend for the sake of their younger siblings.

Ghosts flit through the forest, most ignoring the people that live on the border and call it their home to. One does not. They choose to sit in their favourite tree and watch the children play. The noose they used still hangs from the branch, slowly disappearing into the surrounding bark as the tree grows around it. They love this tree, it has always been their safe place. When they were alive they would run from the villagers and hide among the strong branches, letting the tree keep them safe. Whether they were sad, scared, or lonely, the tree was constant. It was there. They could sit for hours in its protective branches and talk to it without the fear of it becoming bored and abandoning them. These days they don’t do much talking. 

None of the children ever get hurt when playing on this tree. Sometimes they fall from smaller trees and end up with broken bones, but all they ever end up with is a few bruises from the rope tree. The ones who have fallen said it felt like they landed on something soft, almost like there was another person underneath them. There is one boy who walks the woods alone. He has fallen from the tree many times, too small to reach the branches but still tries to climb as high as the other children. When he is alone he can climb higher. Branches seem to dip lower so he can reach them as if someone is pushing them down. If he slips he never falls, instead feeling the light touch of hands that aren’t quite there holding him to the trunk. The rare time he did climb to the top of the tree, he became too scared of the height to climb down again. Someone was pulling at his sleeve, gentle tugs guiding him from branch to branch until he was safe on the ground again. When the adults whisper about cruel spirits and older children scoff about not being scared of ghosts, he sits quietly knowing the truth about the tree and its rope.


End file.
